Sunday, 10 April 2016

So I have just got back from a 2 week trip to Chile for surfing and windsurfing, but due to El Nino affecting the pressure systems in Chile, we didn't have much wind at all, in fact only the last two days. Instead though, we had the best surfing I have ever had and by focusing on it for two weeks meant not only did my shoulders finally relent to the thousands of paddle strokes, but I actually improved a lot and loved it! The last time I went to Chile, I was far too excited to get in for a surf straight away and managed to go over the falls and knee myself in the face, giving me an almighty black eye (see post HERE). This actually knocked all my confidence for late barrelling take-offs for quite a while, so I was glad to be back to my usual confidence level for this trip. After checking all the spots we found our favorite, and although the paddle out looks easy, due to the swell angle and humbolt current moving all the water up the beach, it took up to half an hour to paddle out sometimes. The waves were glassy and started at head high at the beginning of the trip, up to head and a half to double by near the end. It was amazing paddling back up to the point with 'noodle' arms watching barrelling perfect wave by wave go past with a Chilean or one of us in each! Here are some pictures:

Firstly, thank you to C-Skins for providing me with great quality, warm and comfortable suits. This is the C-Skins Angel 5-4mm.

Practising late take-offs, made this one!

Picnic for lunch everyday on the beach, sandy sandwiches-mmmmm! And look at those LEFTS!!

The Rose Tarantula, found a few times on the dirt tracks to the beach.

Dirt tracks, everything ends up dusty!

In the evenings we either chilled at our house overlooking the break, and relaxed in the hot tub...

Or had a sundowner at the local restaurants...

We has a couple of day trips too, finding a hydroelectric dam and vinyards underneath the Andes, such spectacular landscapes!

It was such an amazing trip yet again, and I am stoked to continue improving my surfing as well as my windsurfing!

About Me

I started windsurfing when I was 16 on family watersports holidays once a year. I got properly hooked on my gap year in the British Army in 2005, competing and training in Egypt, Holland and the UK. During this year I saved some money for my own kit and in 2006 started studying aerospace engineering at Southampton University, joining the windsurf club. Sailing around the South coast with lots of friends provided lots of competition, and competing all around the country against other Universities in the Student Windsurf Association events gave me an appetite for competing. For the last couple of years at University I competed in the UK wave circuit, travelling to Wales, Ireland and Scotland. In 2010 after University I secured a job with a big engineering firm, Babcock, but managed to get a deferred entry and sailed in Brazil, Maui and the Canaries, competing in my first PWA event in Gran Canaria. Now I live and work in Plymouth in the UK and sail and surf as much as possible around my job.